(urth) traveling north

[Russ Allbery]

Jeff Wilson <jwilson at io.com> writes:
> On 6/5/2010 7:34 PM, brunians at brunians.org wrote:

>> He'd whine loudly.

> In the interview he said he disliked allegory wherever he smelled
> it. But that didn't stop him from producing some, however
> unintentionally.

By Tolkien's definition of allegory, which emphasizes authorial intention,
unintentional allegory isn't allegory.

    But I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always
    have done so since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence.
    I much prefer history, true or feigned, with its varied applicability
    to the thought and experience of readers.  I think that many confuse
    'applicability' with 'allegory'; but the one resides in the freedom of
    the reader, and the other in the purposed domination of the author.

(From the introduction to LotR.)

-- 
Russ Allbery (rra at stanford.edu)             <http://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/>